The Christmas ball
by Moebius2015
Summary: When she wears BDUs and behaves like soldier Sam or geek Carter, Jack manages to treat her like one of the guys and sometimes, forget that she is a woman. But then comes the Christmas ball... Just an excuse for pure holidays fluff & smut.
1. Chapter 1

**The Christmas ball**

 _Chapter one_

The holidays were closing by. Jack O'Neill had never been keen on mundane parties but as the new commander of the SGC, he didn't have the heart to refuse his people the pleasure of the traditional and otherwise very popular Christmas ball. They had all worked very hard, he was proud of them and they definitely deserved to have some fun and socialize off base once in a while. Walter had been delighted to be allowed to organize the whole thing by himself. You could see how he nearly rubbed his hands in glee at the thought. He knew that, contrary to General Hammond who was very keen on such parties and had many ideas of his own, General O'Neill didn't care a bit and he would let him decide of everything. As a matter of fact, General O'Neill was still new at his job and he had so many other tasks on his plate that he had probably forgotten about the ball as soon as Walter had left his office.

Walter had booked a restaurant at a conference center. It was regularly used for larger events like weddings, which meant there would be place to dance, and people would even have the possibility to sleep over if they had too much to drink. The invitation specified that no uniform was allowed. Walter knew how much the General abhorred his Class A so he had thought it would be a good idea to dress as civilians. It also meant that the event would be more relaxed and that everyone would have a chance to get dressed up for a change.

The General had tried his best to remain on base with the skeleton crew that evening. He had even attempted to intimidate Walter with his most terrible O'Neill glare but the Sergeant knew better and had finally managed to convince him that as head of the SGC, not only was he expected to be at the ball, but it also was his duty to do so. Duty being the key word there. No other argument would have made the General change his mind over this one and Walter was pretty proud that he had come to think of it.

Half of the SGC had already arrived when Jack entered the restaurant that evening. As discreet as his entry was supposed to be, he was not the kind of men that went unnoticed. The dark gray suit was matching his silver hair, he was stunningly handsome. His men were looking at him proudly, although a little jealous of the way the ladies were suddenly so distracted by his arrival. Jack didn't exactly enjoy being the center of attention in a social event, therefore he went straight to his friends.

"Hi T. Daniel. Where's Carter?"

"We have not seen her yet O'Neill. I believe she will arrive shortly"

"I'm impressed Jack. You've really surpassed yourself!" Daniel teased while attempting to touch Jack's combed hair.

"Don't do that!" Jack protested. "You have no idea how much hair gel I had to use to make it go that way!"

"Why Jack, I didn't even know that you had hair gel!" Jack sent him a dirty look and was about to spit some well-chosen words when Ferretti interrupted by clasping a heavy hand on his shoulder.

"Jack! Good to see you! I really thought you would stay on base tonight!"

"Ferretti! Glad you could make it! It's been a while!"

"Yeah, nice of you to invite me and the guys, we miss you up there"

"Really? I always thought you'd like to have your own base, Lou. Not happy with the Alpha site?"

"Oh yeah, it's great. But it's good to be on Earth and get some leave back home too. There's not much going on at the Alpha site, and the food sucks" Ferretti joked. He had some more comments to make but kept them for himself as he noticed the conversations around them had stilled. His eyes followed every gaze toward the entrance. Colonel Carter had just arrived, smiling to known faces but searching for her friends in the crowd, when she noticed the silence. Everyone was looking at her and she blushed. The SGC was not used to see the woman behind the Colonel, and she was simply stunning in her midnight blue ball dress. Her shoulders were left bare as her silver shawl had slipped down. A large sapphire at the end of a diamond necklace was enhancing both her fair skin, the dress and her eyes. All males present vowed to invite her to dance this evening. All but one.

Conversations picked up again and Sam was smiling shyly to her colleagues while making her way toward the high figure of Teal'c that she had noticed on the other side of the room.

"Hi Sam! Nice dress!" Daniel complimented.

"Indeed, you are most beautiful tonight Colonel Carter" Teal'c added. Sam smiled shyly and was about to answer but got interrupted.

"Colonel" Jack saluted dryly, which earned him surprised looks from his friends. He was looking away, conscious of being rude, casting a guilty glance at her when she answered by a surprised but likewise dry "Sir". Both Daniel and Ferretti were looking from one to the other, trying to understand what the problem was between the two. Teal'c wore a hint of an amused smile, which Jack found most irritating. He excused himself as soon as he got a glimpse of Walter, pretending to have some things to arrange with him.

"What was that?" Daniel asked. "Did you two have an argument or something?"

"I have no idea Daniel" Sam answered coldly. She was determined to not let the General spoil the evening for her, what ever the reason for his rude attitude. She was used to his bad temper and chose to attribute it to fatigue. He had had a tough time since he took over the SGC a few months ago, with little sleep and much to deal with. This would explain that, or at least that's what she was trying to convince herself of. Moreover, she was determined not to let anyone see how mortified she was by his demeanor toward her. So she sucked it up and engaged in a pleasant conversation with Ferretti, who was delighted to have her attention. Teal'c glanced toward the tall figure of O'Neill, who was standing with an animated Walter at the appetizers' table, looking bored. The amused flame in the Jaffa's eyes was dancing.

* * *

During the meal, Jack was sitting at SG-1's table and did his best to ignore Sam, who in turn did her best to ignore him, although she could not understand his attitude. Cassie had been invited too and she was in an animated conversation with Daniel, which Sam tried to focus on. Jack showed himself a perfect gentleman toward Dr Brightman who was sitting left to him, and was a wonderful excuse to turn his back to Sam who was sitting on his right. As soon as the meal was over and the music started to play, he invited the doctor to dance so that they could leave the table. Ferretti, Reynolds and Dr Lee rushed toward the table to invite Sam. Ferretti being closest reached her first. Triumphant, he walked her to the dance floor, nagging at Reynolds and some of the other guys who were obviously envious of his luck. Sam did her best to engage with him but she couldn't help to glance toward the General. She couldn't understand why he was so distant. They had had a normal day, week, month even, but she had to admit that her first excuse of him being tired didn't hold anymore. He was attentive and nice to the other guests. As the evening went on, she noticed that he was the perfect host and leader, inviting every woman present to dance. And now, he was dancing with Dr Brightman again. All the women had danced with him at least once, but her. Which Cassie couldn't avoid to comment.

"What's with Jack and you Sam? He has been ignoring you all evening"

"I know Cass', I have no idea why he is acting like that. I have probably done something he will tell me about when he summons me to his office on Monday" Sam said with more concern in her voice than she was willing to admit. Cassie was about to answer when she noticed Jack who was coming toward them. "At last!" she thought. "I made a mountain of nothing, now he will invite Sam to dance!" but Jack took her own hand and lead her toward the dance floor. Cassie was so astonished that she couldn't say a word for a good half minute. Then she decided it was none of her business and she engaged a conversation about how nice the party was. Daniel had noticed the hope on Sam's face when she thought Jack was coming to her, and the hurt when he left with Cassie without even a glance in her direction. He decided it was time to intervene. He took Sam's hand and dragged her toward the dance floor. However, she was reaching her limits and felt more like leaving the ball to go home and let her frustration out in private, than to humor Daniel to a dance. He didn't give her a choice though, he was holding her hand firmly and she would have had to make a scandal to free herself. She followed unenthusiastically and decided she would leave after this last dance.

Daniel was a good dancer, and although Sam preferred more modern music, it was a pleasure to dance this waltz with him. He was discreetly maneuvering them toward Jack and Cassie. He managed to make eye contact with Cassie and communicate that he had something in mind. At the right moment, he taped Jack's shoulder and threw Sam in his arms as Cassie freed herself from him and disappeared in the crowd with Daniel.

"Carter!" Jack whispered, taken aback and turning bright red.

"Sir…" she nearly excused herself. The situation was awkward at best. They both stood there, looking at each other for a couple of seconds before Jack noticed some curious looks from the other dancers, and decided to resume the waltz with Sam. She however, was most uncomfortable and had taken a step away in the direction of their table. He grabbed her and secured her hand in his, keeping his eyes on their joined hands. She was now completely confused by his attitude.

"Sir…?" she asked in despair. "Have I done something wrong?"

"Wrong? Why would you say that?" he replied, obstinately keeping his eyes on their hands.

"Why?" she spitted in a whisper so that the other dancers wouldn't hear. "You've been avoiding me the whole evening, and when you had to talk to me, you were as cold as you could possibly be! I had to assume that I had done something to offend you!" She was outraged and hurt, he could hear than clearly in her voice. He cast a guilty glance at her. Her face was showing both indignation and pain. He had chosen his line of action to protect himself, not realizing how much it would hurt her.

"I'm sorry Carter, you've done nothing exactly _wrong_. It's just…" he wavered.

"It's just what?" she insisted, irritated.

"Well, if you have to know, it's your dress.." he whispered, looking away again.

"What? Is there something wrong with my dress?" she worried. Now he wasn't making any sense. She had had thousands of compliments on her dress that evening!

"As I said… nothing _wrong_ " he tempered.

"Then what?" she was both irritated and eager to understand. She would be sorry if she had offended him in any way, his friendship was very dear to her, but she would have none of this nonsense.

With a sigh, his eyes left their joined hands and dared to look into hers. There was resignation there, shame too perhaps, but also something deep and powerful that she could not define, that was so much Jack O'Neill, and it had a strong, magnetic effect on her.

"Sam… It's not exactly a BDU"

"Of course it's not! This is a Christmas ball!"

"Yeah, I know. But it's not making things easier on me" he whispered as the blush was coloring his cheeks again.

"What do you mean?" she insisted.

He gathered their joined hands and pressed hers on his shirt. Under the toned muscles of his chest, she could feel his heart pumping hard and fast. Very fast. That's when she noticed his controlled breath. She raised an interrogative brow. Holding her gaze with an intensity only he was capable of, he trust his hips toward her.

"Oh… Oh!" Understanding washed over her like a cold shower while her body was reacting immediately to what his had revealed. A kind of hungry vertigo was burning her inside.

He had managed to keep professional so far because he saw her as one of the guys and the BDU saved him. But now, there was no denying that she was a woman, a beautiful, highly desirable woman. He had tried to restore the distance to protect himself by avoiding her since she had crossed the restaurant's threshold. When Daniel had thrown her in his arms he had had no way to hide anymore, and the result was painfully obvious to both of them. It was kind of tough on him to keep his hands in the right places and refrain from kissing her senseless in the middle of the dance floor. She was both turned on and scared as understanding dawned on her. Such powerful drift in a man like Jack O'Neill could lead anywhere! The shame and resignation she had seen in his eyes moments ago were gone. Now there was plain desire and determination. This was not the time for any guy to come and ask her for a dance! She was his and he would fight for that right. She was drawn to him, the magnetic force she felt was growing stronger and alarm bells started ringing in her head. She had to go. Now. Before someone else would be aware of what was going on between them, or before she would respond to his appeal.

She managed to tear her eyes away from his, and cast a glance around. No one seemed to have noticed anything. Taking a step and her hands away, she realized that her own breath was labored too now, it would take all her self control to rejoin her place without anyone noticing that she was dying to rush back to him and give way to her body's need of him. She glanced back. He was standing where she had left him, staring intensely at her, firing the lustful storm that was already tormenting her.

* * *

Walking at a measured pace to try and compose herself, she reached the table where she helped herself with a glass of water. She picked up her purse and shawl and tried to remain casual as she started a goodbye round she hoped would be short. As Teal'c was looking over her head with a shadow of a smirk on his face, Sam followed his gaze and found Jack sitting at the bar with a glass in his hand, his tie loose and the upper button of his shirt opened, like a signal that mundanities were over for tonight. Some young woman from the upper floors at the SGC came to sit at his side. The woman had been one of the first ones he had invited to dance earlier in the evening and she figured that, as he showed some sign to be ready to relax and enjoy the evening like every other guy, she probably had her chances to a date or something. To her disappointment, he barely acknowledged her presence.

He had noticed Sam going around to say goodbye, and his gaze was discreetly following her. She was gorgeous in that dress, dangerously gorgeous. She was already beautiful in BDU's, that dress was an appeal to crime! He wanted her badly, like he seldom had wanted anyone. But he was a big man, he could keep his drifts under control. As long as she kept her distance. That is, if Ferretti would keep his hands away from her! he growled when he saw the Colonel resting a hand on Sam's shoulder for a good bye hug. Jack was half out of his chair when, luckily for Ferretti, the man had the decency to remove that hand immediately after a brief embrace. Several other guys eagerly offered to drive her home, some of them had had a little too much to drink already and would not take the hint when she declined. Jack was holding still, reassured to see that she managed to brush them off without his intervention, but he was ready. What if she ended up saying yes to one of them? he worried. She had every right to do that, and more. He turned his gaze down to his glass. She was not his to protect or possess. She would never be.

His pants were painfully tight now, and the young woman at his side looked like she would be eager to help him with that. He considered the possibility for a moment, she was cute, probably half his age though, and although she was sexy in her own way, she was not his type. He needed to get laid, but not with her. Not with any other than… than the woman he could not have. Jack closed his eyes and drank his glass down. She was gone now so he figured he could leave too. He had been there a reasonably long time, neither Walter nor Daniel could argue that he was being asocial. He grabbed his jacket and made his way to the door after some quick goodbyes. The fresh December wind met him abruptly outside. He put his coat on and lifted the collar while hurrying to his truck, cursing at the melted snow in which he had to wade through to cross the parking lot.

* * *

 **TBC...**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks for following and reviewing this story. Wish you all a merry X-mas!**

* * *

 _Chapter two_

Climbing in the cabin of his truck, he groaned at his throbbing crotch, tempted to get himself off at once, Sam's beautiful figure so fresh in his mind, but it was very cold in the truck still. Starting the engine and turning the heat to maximum was the best he could do for now, although his hand was carefully brushing his erection from time to time as he was driving through the Saturday night traffic. Pictures of a naked Maybourne were not having their usual cooling effect. Neither did thoughts of Kinsey in pink underwear. As a matter of fact, it had gone so far that he had no control anymore, fantasy was torturing him, presenting him with thoughts that were bordering to dirty phantasms, rending his erection harder if possible. He could see himself lifting that beautiful dress with both hands to grab her ass while his mouth would dig in her cleavage in search of a nipple. Although it was still cold in the cabin of the truck, beads of sweat were damping the back of his shirt, breathing was laborious and as his body was tensing he felt like he could come anytime soon. He had wanted her before, had fantasies and played with them but never had he had it so bad for her! That long, fair neck, her delicate throat enhanced by the necklace, the satin of her shoulder. She was perfect. Her eyes. Forms. Mouth. He bit his lips to control the desire to taste hers, wondering what they would feel like on his… Shit. The thought had been enough for him to come in his pants like a teenager. Shit. Just a small, unsatisfying orgasm which did not even offer release, although it took some of the pressure away. At least he could hold the last kilometers now.

The worst was that he felt bad for getting off from a dirty thought of her. He did love and respect her, he did not want to think of her like that but the images kept flashing in his mind. Damned dress. Damned Walter and his Christmas ball with no uniform! Uniforms had saved him so far. They had masked most of her forms for years, and it had been hard enough as it was, but now… now… he would always see that dress and the way it molded her feminine shape, enhanced her waist, her breasts. Boy, he was in trouble!

Killing the engine, he remained seated an instant in his driveway, the sudden silence lingering the tension he was feeling. In the street, a car was approaching slowly and the driver switched the headlights off before parking across the street. Jack found it odd, especially when it looked like the driver would remain in the car. It was looking very much like a stalk, Jack's senses were in alert at once, the soldier taking precedence over any physical need or fantasy the man had seconds ago. At least, that helped with his little problem, much better than Kinsey and Maybourne. In his line of work, he had made enemies, some of them on Earth too. Could be the NID, the Trust, an agent from Ba'al, even a wacko interested in his Ancient gene.. He slowly reached for the gun in the glove compartment, moving as stealthily as he could. It was luck that he had seen the car before he entered the house. That way he had a good chance to take the guy from behind, should he attempt anything. The temperature in the cabin was sinking rapidly but Jack figured the stalker was no better off and would probably act soon, unless he was prepared for a night out in the car. Somehow, Jack did not think that to be the case, but you could never know. Actually, if you thought about it, it was rather strange that someone would have started a stalk just as he himself came back from a party. Wouldn't it be a better strategy to park the car in the street _before_ Jack came home? Or perhaps this had nothing to do with him and he was freezing his butt for nothing. Could it be the neighbor's daughter coming home from a date and making out in the car before her boy friend left and drove home? It would make sense that they would switch the headlights off so her parents wouldn't notice the car…

Jack was about to leave the truck when the car's door opened slowly and the driver came out. That driver was definitely not the neighbor's daughter. She closed the door carefully and crossed the street. Jack couldn't believe his eyes as he saw her make hesitantly for his front door. She stood there for some time, apparently listening for any noise in the house, or making up her mind, before she attempted a knock on the door. What was she doing here? What did she want? Jack was both incredibly happy that she came, but also somewhat angry. She would be the death of him! She knew how much he wanted her, and that nothing could happen, still she was on his front step, in the middle of the night, in that damned dress. She was taking risks. He was used to control himself, but there were limits to his self-control, and he expected she knew that, after their little encounter on the dance floor tonight. He could feel himself getting hard as images of his fantasy were flashing in front of his eyes again.

She knocked a little louder this time, he heard it from the truck. Should he just keep quiet until she gave up and left? It was the coward way but the safest one too. What if she had been assaulted on her way home? She would come to him then, he was sure of it, and that would be an excellent reason to visit him in the middle of the night. Gorgeous as she was tonight, she would have awaken any male's lust, and some of the men had had too much to drink. Could one of them have followed her home and tried to force himself on her? he worried as he climbed down from the truck. He hurried toward her, who had turned around at the sound of the metal door slamming.

"Carter! You OK?" he asked, taking her shoulders to turn her face toward the porch light and see if she was wounded.

"Sir! I… I thought you were home already, I… Yeah, I'm OK" she had to precise when she noticed how worried he was.

"Who was it?" Jack continued on his line of thoughts.

"Who was what?"

"What?"

"Who... What? _What_?" At that stage they were both totally confused, staring at each other to try and make sense of the other's words. Sam shivered.

"You are cold. Come on inside" Jack offered, finding his key and opening the door. He ushered her in, switched the light on and closed the door behind them. Hanging his coat on the pegs, he discarded his dress shoes and jacket, and turned to her.

"Here, give me your coat" She unbuttoned the garment mechanically, still confused and trying to understand what had just happened. The coat fell from her shoulders and she handed it to him, readjusting her shawl around her shoulders with the other hand. Suddenly Jack seemed to realize that the Carter from the Christmas ball was in his entrance, the one he had avoided the whole evening, the one he just had had dirty fantasies about on his way home. His casual demeanor froze as his jaw dropped and his eyes gave her a once over, her coat still hanging from his hand.

"Sir?" That seemed to shake him enough to slowly resume his hanging of the coat on the pegs. He took a deep breath, cast a glance at her and turned toward the kitchen.

"Want anything?" he called over his shoulder. She followed dutifully.

"I could do with a coffee, if you take one too" she said.

In the kitchen, he only switched the light over the sink on, keeping his back at her. He filled the coffee machine with water and coffee, conscious that she had her eyes on him all the time in the semi-darkness of the kitchen. He felt them like a burning point on his neck, and again, he felt himself harden. Shit.

He had to play it safe. They should sit down, with something between them. In the den, they could sit on each side of the coffee table. But he would have such a view on her legs if she decided to cross them and the dress would open. The kitchen felt safer.

"Have a chair Carter" he offered. He didn't hear any indication that she was sitting down so he turned around to see what she was doing. She was standing, stunning in the semi-darkness, a hand on the kitchen island, looking intensely at him.

"You are doing it again Sir" she accused.

"Doing what?

"Keeping your back at me" There was a hint of hurt on her face that made it impossible for him to deny. He would not insult her by pretending she had it all wrong. But she knew why he was acting that way, so what did she expect, coming to his house in the middle of the night? That the effect she had on him would just vanish once she had left the party? She had used him to better judgement than that.

"What you want Carter? You're the one who left the party once you knew why I had acted like I did"

"I know. I got scared, that's why I left"

"Scared?"

"Yes. Perhaps you haven't noticed, but you too are out of uniform tonight" she added shyly. He quirked an eyebrow.

"Now what do you mean by that?"

"Do you know how handsome you are Sir?" He got confused at that.

"What?" He had never thought the thought.

"You really think men are the only ones to react to outfits? Every woman in the room had her eyes on you!" He was so cute with that air of confusion and disbelief all over his face. And so sexy with that loose tie over that opened upper button... She had to bite her lips to stop her tongue from licking them.

"My reaction to your admission just... Let's just say... the intensity between us scared me. But not anymore. So I came back"

"Oh?"

"I realized that…" she paused. "That… I _like_ when you look at me that way" she whispered.

In a heartbeat his eyes had darkened, the hint of surprise being replaced by that dangerous look of his, the one that showed he had made a decision and that he was in charge. She swallowed the lump in her throat, afraid that she may have gone too far. He walked slowly up to her, his eyes never leaving hers, until he was just inches away.

"Don't mess up with me Carter" he growled menacingly. Confusion and a hint of worry sized her for a second before the soldier took over and she regained control of herself.

"No Sir" she whispered back. But being so close to her, he was not paying attention to her words anymore. His gaze had left her eyes to study her mouth and the cleavage under it. Holding her breath, she was waiting. His jaw was so tense, he would soon break a tooth if he carried on. That and his heavy breathing were the only signs of how much he had to work to keep himself from an inappropriate behavior. His eyes returned to hers, still showing that he was in control but with a question in them. They were telling her "I could kiss you right there, is that what you want?" She did. But she could not get herself to say it right out. She closed her eyes, biting her lips in frustration. Jack didn't need words to read her. He was drawn to her like by a magnet, his thirst of her growing stronger now that he could feel the heat from her body. His trembling hands climbed slowly along her arms. One of them made its way around her waist and hold her possessively against him while the other continued its journey upward, spreading shivers on its way as it stopped on her shoulder and stroke it as for studying the texture of her skin before continuing up her neck and jaw. His thumb draw the contours of her lips before his mouth took hers. He was not forceful, but not gentle either. He was definitely in charge. His kiss was powerful and demanding, she had no intention to refuse him anything. Her hands climbed to cup his jaws, making sure he wouldn't stop too soon.

She had to support herself against the kitchen island as he was getting more demanding, exploring her ear and neck in the semi-darkness of the room. She was enjoying the muscles of his back, how they were rolling under the fabric of his shirt as he was slowly exploring her body. Sam reached for his loosen tie, removing it to give her mouth a better access to the soft skin between the neck and the shoulder, while her hands were opening the buttons, one by one, beginning with the upper one. A hand brushing his belly made him growl in her neck: "Samantha"

She liked that very much. The way he said it, and that he used her full name, not the short "one-of-the-guys" version. It made her feel like a woman, and the way he was touching her was emphasizing the feeling. Her hands had now found their way under his loose shirt, exploring the hard planes of his chest, his back, his shoulders, where they had to rest to get some support as he was digging in her cleavage with his tongue. Trying to guide him and help a breast out of the dress, she was holding her breath, which made him smile. His nose was opening the way between the fabric of the dress and her skin, his mouth exploring with small licks that were driving her crazy. He was digging deeper and deeper until she moaned when he met a harden nipple. He could just reach it with the tip of the tongue, flicking it back and forth, soaking the fabric and making her moan loudly. One of her hands had reached the short hair of his neck, pressing his head harder against her breast. He grabbed the sides of the dress, drawing them slowly down until both breasts had popped out of it. At last he could take them fully in his mouth, for both their satisfaction.

He paid much attention to that part of her anatomy before reaching for her mouth again. His lips were soft and wet from kissing her breasts, her tongue explored them before demanding entry into his mouth. They were panting in the dark, bodies tense and ready, exploring each other with delight and desperation. One of his hands now spread over her ass, he lifted her thigh to hook it around his hip and continued to descend along her leg until he reached the hem of the dress and crawled under it to go upward again, lifting the dress along. As he reached all the way up again, he was delighted at the feeling of satin on the globe of her ass. He was certain her panties were blue like her dress but he chose to check that later on. For now it was nice enough to slid his hand under it and fondle with her skin and suck her breast again. As much as Sam was enjoying the attention, she wanted more. She liked that he still had his shirt on, although it hang open and loose, giving him a hot, disheveled look she appreciated. Reaching for his belt, she attempted to open it despite the difficulty of the task, due to the proximity of their bodies. Jack gave her more room before he lifted her on the kitchen island. Pausing, he checked that she was OK with that. He had to smile at the sight. She was beautiful, tousled, her eyes bright with desire, her mouth half open on a labored breath, sitting on the counter with her breasts exposed and the gorgeous dress hitched up, revealing a long leg and the blue of her panties. She was obviously impatient, because she took firmly the collar of his shirt to drag him back between her legs and kissed him again. He hooked the hem of her panties and worked to get them out of the way. His hand followed the way up again to the apex of her thigh, she hissed when his thumb brushed her mound and pressed down toward her center.

"Jack…" she managed to say. "Jack…"

"Samantha.." he whispered back. "I want you so badly" he said, pressing his groin against hers.

"Yes" she answered, holding tight on his butt with her calve to keep the pressure at the same place. "Come" she added, unhooking his suit pants and opening his fly. The pants fell on the floor and he sparked them away before attacking the buttons on the wrists of his shirt. He was about to remove the garment but she stopped him.

"Leave it on" she purred. "You're so hot in a shirt..." He smirked and discarded his boxers instead. He really enjoyed the feeling of finally being free of his clothes, his virility proudly raised as to find her. Jack had never thought about kitchen design before, but he now had to wonder if this kind of activity had been taken into account when the height of the counter had been decided. It was just perfect, he could slide right in and did so with a delighted sigh. The feeling was wonderful, she was wonderful and her biting his ear was adding to the hotness of the moment. He wanted to shout in triumph but chose to start moving instead. Sam's heals, shoes still on, were digging in the cheeks of his butt, supporting his efforts and helping him find the right angle and pressure.

She came so fast that he was taken by surprise. He had thought he would have to pace himself to give her a chance, feeling that he was so swollen and ready that he would come too fast if he was not careful. But the moaning and the tension of her body were not to be mistaken. She was surfing on the wave of a long orgasm he could feel all the way inside her and he let a grunt out as he lost control himself. He had wanted to take his time, this was much too fast but eh... The tension had been building up for years, and the evening, that evening had been too much! Panting, heads resting on each others shoulder, still joined, none of them wanted to end their moment.

* * *

Finally, they separated and Jack processed in cleaning them both. He wanted to lick her clean but thought it was perhaps too much for a first time, so he used some tissues instead and helped Sam climb down from the counter to kiss her softly. He picked their clothes from the floor while Sam was adjusting her dress. They smiled shyly to each other and Jack took her hand, leading her out of the kitchen toward the bedroom but Sam stopped in the corridor.

"I should go" she said.

"Stay"

She was hesitant. It had already gone too far, and staying the night felt a lot more intimate than what they had just shared.

"Please?" he insisted. How could she refuse? She smiled and followed him to the bathroom where they removed the rest of their clothes. Jack found a hanger for her dress and joined her in the shower. Over eight years together every day, they had never shared anything more intimate than an alien virus and a shoulder in tough moments. This was feeling both awkward and so right at the same time. He turned the water off to wash her, spreading foam from the soap over the body he learned at the same time. She had to smile at the way he treated her, like something precious, he was studying her curves, her skin, the texture of her muscles with such an awe, love and delight, he could have gone on for hours if she hadn't taken the sponge from him to start doing the same with his body. As they both were covered with foam and the temperature in the shower was sinking, she turned the water on again and, standing under the spray, she kissed him gently.

He dried her with a large towel in which she wrapped herself. He was smiling at her while drying himself, and she took his towel to dry his back. The towel around his waist, he guided her to his bedroom, opened the quilt and, throwing his towel away, he lay down on the other side, looking at her while she was opening her towel and climbed in the bed to cuddle with him.

"I like that" she said when he closed his arms around her.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah"

"Me too"

"Good night Jack"

"Night Sam"

* * *

 **TBC...**

 **This was the end, originally, but I changed my mind :-)**


	3. Chapter 3

**A short chapter taking place the following morning. Hope you like it!**

* * *

 _Chapter 3_

She hadn't opened her eyes yet but she had woken enough to feel that she was not home. His scent was everywhere, filling her with delight and memories of the evening. She could feel his body heat close by. They were not touching, but he was not far. Feeling a butterfly touch on her forehead, she guessed that he was removing a bang from her eyes, and could not refrain the corner of her lips to lift just a little bit. He had always been a toucher, that's why he was so good at hugging, and why he always had to fidget with something when he was bored. Now he was probably dying to touch her and was hardly keeping his hands to himself to let her sleep.

"How long have you been awake?" he asked with a hint of indignation. She smiled fully before opening her eyes. She looked at him with adoration before she talked.

"Have you slept at all?"

"Not that much... How d'you know?"

"I guessed. Why?"

"I kept waking up to check that you were still here. That all of this wasn't just a wonderful dream" he smiled. Sam couldn't help but melt at the rare vulnerability he showed. He had not been kidding when he had warned her not to mess up with him last night. Not that she had any intention of backing off, but if she ever did... She didn't want to think of what he could do. She scooted closer to cuddle up with him. He rested back on his pillow and took her in his arms with a satisfied sigh.

They rested in the comfort of their embrace, happy to hold each other as a new day was dawning.

"Eight years of self-control annihilated by an evening gown" he said casually after a while. She didn't answer but he could feel her smile on his chest.

"It's like Cinderella really"

"Really?"

"Yeah... As long as you were hidden in BDUs, I managed for years, but then, you arrived to the ball in that magical dress from your fairy Godmother, magnificent, gorgeous, sexy, hot, wonderful... Did I mention hot?"

"Ah! Such an exaggeration!" she protested, blushing.

"Yeah, isn't it..." Sam was a little taken aback and disappointed at his change of heart, but he continued.

"If you'd been Cinderella, I'd be knocking at every door in town holding your tiny shoe right now, instead of holding you in my bed" he smiled, hugging her a little tighter.

"Yeah... about that..." she began.

"I didn't stand a chance" he continued

"Jack, you are still my CO..." but he didn't let her finish the sentence. He pushed her gently back on the pillow and lent over her.

"Later" he said before silencing her with a languorous kiss. He knew perfectly well that they needed to have this conversation but just now he didn't want to think about it. He wanted to love her, touch and taste and learn every part of her, slowly this time, before they'd have to deal with any kind of consequences.

* * *

Since he had lost his symbiote, Teal'c had learned to enjoy sleeping late whenever he could, but it was still early this Sunday morning as he found himself in Daniel's kitchen making coffee. He knew that although Daniel only had had three and a half glass of wine the day before, he would need a strong coffee to fight the hangover. He had to smile when he heard his friend stumble in the corridor, groaning at the bright light in the kitchen.

"Morn Teal'c" the archaeologist said, letting himself fall on a chair, holding his head.

"Good morning Daniel Jackson" the Jaffa said, joining him with big mugs of burning coffee.

"Thanks" Daniel said with a grateful glance. "You're a real friend" he stated. Teal'c bowed his head with a knowing smile.

"God I shouldn't have accepted that third glass yesterday! Reynolds' a jerk. The man can drink and drink, he never gets drunk! I'm glad you could drive us home" Daniel babbled.

"How is your head Daniel Jackson?"

"Hmff. Not good"

"Maybe you should rest some more"

"Ah.. no. I think I'll just hit the shower"

"I believe you would feel better if you had some sustenance first. I could fry some egg"

"Ugh.. No egg for me thanks. I'll just have a toast" Daniel said, pushing himself out of the chair and slowly making his way toward the counter, while Teal'c was studying the contents of the fridge.

Teal'c was just finishing his breakfast when Daniel came back, freshly showered.

"Are you feeling better?" he inquired.

"That helped a little bit yeah" Daniel sat back on his chair with a new cup of coffee.

"This is good news Daniel Jackson" the Jaffa said, putting his plate in the dishwasher.

"Did you speak with Jack yesterday?"

"I have not"

"Sam?"

"Just a few words. What is your purpose?"

"Jack was just strange. The way he treated her... She didn't even know why he was acting like that. Something must have happened"

"I believe O'Neill had his reasons Daniel Jackson"

"Yeah? I don't think it could be any good reason to be so cold to Sam if she's done nothing to him, do you?"

"Colonel Carter is perfectly capable of taking this up with him if she finds it necessary"

"You know, he hurt her. She was really mortified. You could see that, didn't you?"

Teal'c bowed his head in agreement.

"I think we should go talk to him"

"I do not think this is our place Daniel Jackson"

"We are their friends. Her friends. Who would talk sense into the man if not us?"

"I believe they will sort the matter without help from our part"

"Well I don't think so. Sam will never say a word, she is such a good little soldier, she will just suck it up, but that's not fair you know? She should not have to be hurt like that, not without knowing the reason for it at least, and you know Jack will just pretend nothing happened when we meet again on Monday. Look, I just want to talk to him, make him realize that he hurt her, so he gets a chance to talk to her, explain things you know? He'll probably never realize a thing, he's been so busy since he's taken over the SGC, he just never has time to sit and talk with us anymore. He probably needs a friend right now, maybe he's just sitting home and feeling bad. We have to talk to him. Come on, it won't take long" Daniel said on his way to the front door. Teal'c followed reluctantly.

* * *

 **TBC**


	4. Chapter 4

**Last chapter of this story. Let me know what you think!**

* * *

 _Chapter 4_

"God Sam..." Jack said, collapsing back on his pillow.

"My thoughts exactly" she panted, wiping the sweat from her forehead. The quilt had fallen to the floor a long time ago. Jack crept on the bed to rest his head on Sam's belly. She lazily stroke the wet hair on his temple before pushing him away.

"Oh Jack, no offense, but you are so warm!"

"Yeah" he said, moving back to his place. "I think I've worked out three weeks worth of cake"

"The mattress's all wet"

"No wonder..." he smirked. "How about a shower? The bed would dry in the meantime"

"I like the way you're thinking, but you'll have to feed me first. I'm starving"

"Ha. I knew there'd be a downside before long" he said, leaving the bed and helping her up. After a quick and refreshing shower, Sam felt much better, but contemplating her dress hanging on the door, she could not make herself to put it back on.

"Could I borrow something from you?"

"Have a look in the guest room, I'm sure you'll find something. Cassie's nearly your size"

"Right" she said, kissing his nose before she left the room. Jack picked some fresh clothes from his drawers. He was about to unfold a t-shirt when he cast a glance toward the door and a little smirk appeared at the corner of his mouth. He walked to his closet, weighing the different options available, and chose a dark blue shirt to go with his black jeans. She had said he was hot in a shirt, so shirt it had to be. Sam joined him in the kitchen in a jeans and sweater, giving him an appreciative once over as she entered.

"Found what you wanted?"

"Sort of. The jeans are OK, but the blouses were to tight so I went for a sweater instead"

"Mmm, too bad. I think I'd like you in a tight blouse"

"Hm. I'm sure, but I like to be able to breath without popping a button or two"

"Jeez Sam, continue to talk like that and you'll get a new round on the kitchen island before you have anything to eat!" he said, catching her from behind to kiss her neck.

"Jack!" she laughed as she slapped his hands away. "No kidding, I'm starving!"

"Yeah, me too" he said, wiggling his eyebrows, earning a new laughter from her.

"How can you after such a.. well, you know"

"Oh yeah, I know" he kissed her gently before resuming his breakfast cooking.

* * *

He was refilling her coffee cup when they heard a knock at the door.

"Stay put" he said. Opening the front door, he had the surprise to find Daniel, followed by Teal'c.

"Hi Jack"

"Daniel. Teal'c. What's up?"

"Can we come in?"

"Er... Why?"

"We'd like to talk to you" Daniel said, trying to enter. But Jack stood firmly on his ground.

"Talk to me? Why for?"

"Well, can't a couple of friends come by and talk to you? It's not gonna take long"

Jack looked at him suspiciously, then at Teal'c who was obviously not happy to be there.

"This is not a good time guys. How about we do this tomorrow eh?"

"Jack! This is kind of important!"

"Daniel Jackson, I believe we should leave" Jack cast a grateful glance to his Jaffa friend but Daniel wouldn't give up.

"It's about Sam, Jack" Daniel pushed past him and invited himself in.

"What about her?"

"What was that yesterday?"

"Daniel..." Jack warned.

"Oh come on! You were rude, at best! You hurt her you know?! Why did you do that for? She's your friend, isn't she? I thought you cared about her!" Daniel fired.

"I do"

"Then why did you ignore her like that? It was completely unnecessary, and she was so... so... mortified!"

"Daniel, leave it there will you?"

"No. No I won't. I want to know what that was all about! You have to talk to her! Apologize!"

"Daniel Jackson, I really believe we should leave" Teal'c tried again.

"I really think you should leave" Jack concurred.

"Why? Why should I? I'm your friend, to both of you! I care about you and I want to help"

"I really appreciate that Daniel, but right now, you are not helping at all. In fact, your foot is in your mouth up to the knee. Back off now"

"Did she do something to hurt you? Is that it?"

"DANIEL! Will you listen to me?" The archaeologist jumped at the shouting but it took only one second for him to be at it again. He knew he was right and saw it as his duty to help his friends, even against their will.

"No Jack, YOU listen to me!"

"Daniel" Sam's voice said in his back. He turned in astonishment to face his friend standing at the kitchen's door.

"Sam! What are you doing here?"

"I..." she blushed. "We were about to have a conversation"

"Which you interrupted!" Jack rubbed in.

"Er... I... Sorry guys, I thought..."

"I really appreciate your concern Daniel, really, but you should listen to the General now"

"You could have said she was here" Daniel whined reproachfully at Jack.

"Why? It's none of your business!" Jack was getting quite irritated now. He could appreciate his friend's concern, but just now, he didn't want to tell him anything and the guy was just intruding.

"Had you told me that she was here in the first place, I wouldn't have insisted that you talk to her, see?" Jack rolled his eyes and made a ninety degrees change of subject.

"How's your head anyway? Hangover?" he said dryly.

"My head's fine, thank you. Come on Teal'c, I think we are done here"

"Indeed. Maybe we could drive to the bakery and buy some doughnuts?" the Jaffa answered with a hint of hope.

"Whatever makes you happy. See you tomorrow Sam. Jack" Sam gave him a hug to prevent Jack from shutting the door on him.

"Ciao guys!" the General said before closing the door.

"You were a bit hard on him, weren't you?" Sam said reproachfully.

"Oh come on! He can never give up!"

"He cares for us..."

"Yeah, he does. But I am not about to tell him anything yet. We have some talking to do on our own before anyone gets to know anything" Sam sighed. He was right. They couldn't afford to delay any longer. Things had to change, and they had to decide how.

* * *

"You know, I could perhaps - _perhaps_!- have left it in the room after yesterday, but after this morning... it's not an option anymore. There's no way I'll go back to where we were before" Jack said with such a tender and loving gaze on her that she felt her heart melt for the man.

"There's no way I can give you up either. I'll resign"

"Are you nuts? The SGC needs you! The country! The planet needs you! Without you, we don't stand a chance against the bad guys!"

"You know that's not true. There are plenty of scientists perfectly capable of doing my job"

"None of them has field experience! And none of them is as good as you. It's much simpler if I retire"

"What? You just got promoted General! Who would run the SGC?"

"There's plenty of Generals able to run the SGC!"

"Yeah, like Bauer? No thanks!"

"There's Howards. Landry. Miller..."

"They have no experience of what we are dealing with. None of them has ever been off-world"

"Hammond's been what? Once in seven year?"

"Right... But you would get bored in a week. And worry each time I'd be on a mission"

"Of course I would. Already do"

"I know" she said softly. She knew how hard it was for him to send them off-world and stay behind. The fact that he had refused to give them a fourth was his way to keep his own place on the team, but also the proof that he didn't trust anyone enough to watch their six.

"One of us has to go Sam. It can't be you"

"I could work as a civilian Jack. It has happened in many alternate realities, it seems to work well..."

"Ya think? In those alternate realities, I'm dead and Earth is invaded by the Goaul'd!"

"Well, there's that... but I doubt it happened as a consequence of me leaving the Air Force"

"I'm sorry Sam, but in our reality, Air Force personals can't have a relationship with civilians working in the same chain of command anyway, so it's not helping"

"Damn. What do you propose then?"

"The only solution is one of us being reassigned"

"You mean, outside the SGC?"

"Yeah. I could also talk to the President and ask for a favor, but if he can't grant it, there'd be an investigation and we'd be toast"

"OK. We'll both look for positions out of the SGC tomorrow. The first to get one moves out"

"OK"

Sam knew she's be the one. She had the best chances to get a position in a research facility, she received offers regularly, and she knew the head of the R&D at Groom Lake was going to retire before the summer. She had been offered the position on Thursday. Nevada was not that far away...

"What do we do until then?" she asked.

"We'll have to be very careful"

"You think it's wise to see each other while we are still in the same chain of command?"

"It's not exactly wise. But could you continue as before, like nothing has happened? For _months_?"

"God no! I don't want to either! But Daniel and Teal'c? What if they notice something?"

"Teal'c probably knows already"

"You think so?" Sam asked, alarmed.

"He won't say a world, even under torture. But he is sharp and I'm sure he understood the whole thing at the ball yesterday already. He had that smirk of his... I wouldn't be surprised if he knew why you were here this morning either"

"You think so?"

"Oh yeah"

"Then, if Teal'c can guess as much, others could as well"

"I don't think so Sam. He knows us very well and he is damn good at noticing small details others don't have a clue about. Pretty sure he noticed your coat in the entrance. Daniel didn't"

"You're probably right... Still... That's an awful big risk"

"Yeah... I'm more worried about Daniel though. If he doesn't know, he'll be whining on subjects he has no business with like today, and say things that could make others suspicious. If he knows, he could forget that he is not supposed to talk about it in front of others. Then I'd have to shoot him"

"I know what you mean. We have to find a cover story for what happened yesterday"

"What could you possibly have done that would make me so angry at you?"

"Am _I_ supposed to have done something? What about you being in a bad mood?"

"Not really plausible"

"No?" Sam laughed.

"What you laughing for?" he said, playing offended.

"Oh nothing. So no bad mood. Then, you'd lost a wedge? About me?"

"We'd need someone to have won said wedge. Ferretti was fairly glad yesterday, but he would have bragged about it if he'd won against me. Can't we just let it be? Now that he knows we are talking about it, he'd be happy and leave us be, won't he?"

"Are you kidding? First thing tomorrow, he will settle in my lab and try to get me to spill the beans! He must be dying to know what happened!" Jack sighed, resigned.

"You're right. He'll never leave it alone"

* * *

Sam was actually surprised. Daniel had hold as late as 10 o'clock Monday morning before he showed up with two cups of coffee in her lab.

"Hi Sam! Did you have a nice week end?" he offered, passing her one of the mugs.

"Hi Daniel, thanks. Yeah, calm Sunday. You? Were you with Teal'c the whole day?"

"Yeah, we were out skating for a couple of hours, then we rented a movie and crashed on the sofa" he smiled.

"I didn't know Teal'c could skate?"

"He is getting better at it. What about you?"

"Well, you know. Chores, some cooking, nothing special..."

"Yeah? You... stayed late at Jack's?"

"Daniel. I'm not going to tell you anything about this conversation so just forget it"

"Oh come on Sam! You can at least tell me why he was such a jerk to you at the ball!"

"You can ask him directly"

"Are you nuts? He'll never tell me!"

"Then why would I?"

"Sam! I'm your friend!"

"And he is not?"

"Of course he is!"

"Then?"

"Then what?"

"Then you can ask him"

"Argh! You are getting more and more like him, you know that?"

"In that case I believe it's a good thing. Now I have work to do so if you'll excuse me.."

"Wait! What's that?"

"What's what?"

"That!" Daniel replied, pointing at a paper on Sam's desk. She turned it upside down before he could read more of it.

"Sam? What are you doing with a job application?" her friend questioned, a bit alarmed.

"That's none of you business Daniel" she protested.

"Oh but I think it is! Are you planning on leaving SG-1?"

"As a matter of fact I am thinking about it. But nothing is decided yet"

"Why? Why would you leave? Oh... I get it! You've argued with Jack and now you want to leave! Oh! No, I know! _That_ 's what Jack was so pissed about at the ball! He's pissed because you want to leave!"

"Maybe. But I haven't applied yet"

"But you are going to! Where?"

"Area 51"

"In Nevada? But Sam, why?"

"It's a very good career move. And I'd actually have time for research. Here I can't work seriously on anything, I'm always in the field"

"But you love being in the field! And we need you there too"

"Thanks Daniel, I love being on SG-1 with you and Teal'c, but since Colon... General O'Neill left, it's not really the same, I'm in charge and it's a big responsibility to be the leader of the first team. I'm always afraid I'd do something stupid and put you guys in danger"

"Sam... you're as good as Jack, you learned from the best! You just need some time to get used to the job!"

"Well, maybe, but I want to try this anyway"

"Why? Why would you leave it all and end up all alone in Nevada?"

"It's my choice Daniel. My life..."

"Right. You're right, it's your life and I can't tell you what to do with it. But I suddenly feel Jack had every reason to be mad at you on Saturday" he said, leaving the lab in a mood.

Sam smiled, both at the faith and affection her friend was showing her, and at the fact that her little set up had worked wonders.

Now, she just had to send the application and hope for the best.

* * *

 **Epilogue**

Sam's application was sent the day after, and she got the position at once. With a heavy heart, General Jack O'Neill, head of the SGC, approved her reassignment, it couldn't have gone any other way. She would leave in the summer. Nevada was not that far and she would have more free time than she had at the SGC. The good part of it was that he wouldn't have to send her risk her life through the gate anymore, and for that he was infinitely grateful.

But since when did plan A ever work for SG-1? Just a few weeks before Sam was supposed to leave and become head of the R&D at Area 51, Jack was ordered to Washington as head of the Department of Homeworld Security, and Landry took his place at the SGC. Teal'c left to Dakara and Daniel managed to get himself a position on Atlantis, waiting for the Daedalus to take him away from the loneliness he was now experiencing as the last member of SG-1 still at the SGC.

But then again, plan A is a waste of time. Daniel should have known he would never leave. Not once Vala Mal Doran had stepped into the gate room...

* * *

THE END

 **Hope you liked this little fantasy. Reviews are always appreciated!**


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